Armenia hopes to receive the finalized version of the visa liberalization action plan from the European Union by the end of September, Interior Minister Arpine Sargsyan told reporters.
“We are at the final stage of receiving the action plan. We’ve worked extensively with our partners and announced the start of the dialogue. This has been a unique process in Europe, as the EU has rarely launched such talks in recent years,” she said, according to Armenpress.
Sargsyan emphasized that an exception was made in the EU’s approach toward Armenia.
“Several missions have already arrived in Armenia. We expect to receive the final text of the action plan this autumn,” she added.
As the lead negotiator on the Armenian side, the minister noted that cooperation with EU counterparts aims to ensure prompt delivery of the document. Once received, the responsibility for its implementation will fall to the Armenian side.
“According to our preliminary understanding, we’ll have the action plan by the end of September. Then we’ll begin the work of implementing all its measures,” Sargsyan said, adding that this will involve several agencies, not just the Ministry of the Interior.
She also announced that a new biometric system is scheduled for rollout in the second half of 2026. Work continues on finalizing the design of both new passports and ID cards.
On March 26, Armenia’s National Assembly approved a bill on launching the EU accession process in its second and final reading. The government had earlier endorsed the proposal, initiated by the “Eurovote” civic movement. However, the EU has not officially invited Armenia to begin accession talks. Opposition parties have labeled the legislation as legally absurd. The law has been signed by the president.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk also warned that Armenia “cannot sit on two chairs” and will ultimately have to choose between the Eurasian Economic Union and the EU.
